Tuesday, December 14, 2010

While the Hollywood Foreign Press Association does not have member overlap with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, their very high profile assures that their nominees get a large media platform with which to pursue more Oscar votes. Sometimes it helps sometimes it doesn't. But here's a list of major contenders shunned by the Globe voters this morning.

"I never thought they'd use my stuff!"

Mark Ruffalo -though The Kids Are All Right won four major nominations, he was still snubbed. This could be a bad Oscar sign. As we've long thought, he makes acting look far too easy. He takes complex characters and performs them so naturalistically that voters who like to see actors sweat or strain for effect -- there are many such voters as awards history readily proves -- will never be won over. Arguably only Jeff Bridges, an American icon, has ever really been able to get away with that and win steady awards love. Ruffalo has yet to be nominated by either the Globes, the Oscars, SAG or the BAFTAs for anything. His only major awards run remains a small handful of critics citations for his debut You Can Count on Me (2000). It's not all bad news though. His performance in The Kids Are All Right was recently nominated at the Spirits and by the BFCA.

127 Hours -It didn't place in Best Director or in Best Picture. In terms of the awards race, has it morphed into the one man show (James Franco) that it looks like on the surface?

Cher - We were pulling for a Best Actress Comedy/Musical honor because we know they don't perform the nominated songs. Get Cher back on that red carpet, damnit. This was the only place to do it really. You can never count on Oscar to let the nominated songs be performed as they should. So who knows what to expect even if "You Haven't Seen the Last of Me" gets shortlisted by Oscar. For all we know, the ageist Academy producers will ask Miley Cyrus to sing it.

Rabbit Hole *just added* it's still only the Nicole Kidman show (but what a show that is), despite fine work from Aaron Eckhart and Dianne Wiest to either side of her.

True Grit -Zero nominations. Nada. Perhaps they didn't screen in time. Perhaps the HFPA just didn't bite... they've embraces Coen Bros pictures in the past, even more often than Oscar.
The Ghost Writer -Zero nominations. The Roman Polanski film won some early honors overseas but has been ignored by the majority of American awards. Pity. Everyone has such short memories here in the US awards circuit... even the "Foreign Press"

How Do You Know - Zero nominations. The brand new James L Brooks comedy stars Reese Witherspoon, Owen Wilson, Jack Nicholson and Paul Rudd. Brooks and his cast have won 26 Globe nominations, 8 Globe statues and a Cecil B. DeMille between them. Why no love this time? It can't be the bad buzz. The Tourist, which has received an excruciating 20% critical approval on Rotten Tomatoes (and disappointing box office receipts!) won a Best Picture nomination.

Other rejected films: Mike Leigh's Another Year, Clint Eastwood's Hereafter (they often go for him), and the Robert Duvall period piece Get Low.

Finally, we think it's worth noting that in the very loosely defined Comedy/Musical Best Picture category --they chose two action films Red & The Tourist, one eyesore Alice in Wonderland, one musical Burlesque and one dramedy The Kids are All Right -- any number of entirely snubbed films like Greenberg, Please Give, Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World or Made in Dagenham would have been far worthier choices than the first three category (and quality) definition-stretchers. The Globes are the only major organization that reaches out regularly to comedic-tilting films, so to screw up so badly, eschewing all traditional notions of quality, is a blunder; a real opportunity wasted.

34 comments:

You forgot to mention the snub of RH besides Kidman. But aside from that - points well taken, all. (I had forgotten about Greenberg, but I haven't seen it. It did receive a good bit of critical love when it came out.)

Yeah, the comedy category is embarrassing. They could've gone with Please Give, Easy A, Dagenham, Scott Pilgrim, and Cyrus just to name one full slate of good comedies they ignored.

I'd assume How Do You Know and True Grit were not screened in time. I'd also assume Steinfield at least will be big for SAG, but maybe this recent bump in the road will make oscar reconsider the fraudulent placement? I could see Wiest finally bumping both Steinfield and Kunis at oscar time if that's the kind of mood they're in.

Comedy nominations aside, though, these noms were very cool. Are Gosling and Williams on firmer footing than we all thought? Best Actress seemed to have coalesced around Bening, Lawrence, Portman, Kidman and probably Williams, though Moore, Manville, and I suppose Berry are right behind. Blue Valentine needs to keep a strong campaign going to get its stars over the finish line.

If Franco, Eisenberg, and Gosling ALL make it in, that will have to be the youngest and hippest best actor lineup they've EVER produced. I just can't imagine they're all on solid footing. That's just too good. But I don't feel any real love for Bridges or Duvall. They may just decide they want a break from Bridges since he just won, so they can let some new blood in instead.

For all we bitch about the stodginess of these awards bodies, you have to admit, the youth vote gets a little bit stronger every year. Those new members make themselves heard.

I'm sad about...No Hershey or Ruffalo..or Hawkes...not hating Kunis though..but Douglas? other then that I can deal :) I guess Inception will go the way of getting no acting nominations just Best Picture and tech stuff. I wish The Social Network would do the same lol.

The comedy nominations almost make me want to puke. There is no excuse for nominating poorly reviewed performances in a poorly reviewed film like The Tourist. Both the movie, Jolie and Depp were panned all over the place.

I agree...the best picture musical/comedy category is one of the worst ever...regardless, I haven't seen The Tourist (and I love me some Angelina), but judging by the 37% on metacritic, this is a poor choice for best picture. But RED? and ALICE IN WONDERLAND??? Please!!!

What happened to Cyrus? Greenberg? Easy A? At least Emma Stone got a nomination...and sorry, I can't fully bring myself to claim Made in Dagenham a comedy...it just isn't.

One of the best line-ups ever for musical/comedy had to be for 2001: Moulin Rouge! (winner), Bridget Jones's Diary, Gosford Park, Legally Blonde, and Shrek...a solid mix of critically praised, arthouse, and commercially successful movies.

The one thing we're forgetting also is the billion dollars that Alice made-I keep forgetting that, internationally, this is one of only six films to ever make over $1 billion. That money probably is helping it a bit here.

I understand that the Globes are about ratings and stars, but you would think they would at least try to maintain an ounce of dignity, integrity or credibility.

In the days of real movie stars like Will Smith, Tom Cruise, Julia Roberts, and Tom Hanks - even they were not nominated unless their films were well reviewed. They didn't get in for panned performances in panned movies, the film at least had to be decently liked by critics. Gawd, I miss those people, I really do. I never thought I'd see the day where I longed for Hanks, Smith, Roberts, or Cruise (mostly because they were everywhere) but in a time of A-Listers doing pre-packaged crap (like Jolie & Depps' Tourist) merely for box office revenue and then getting award recognition for it.

Depp and Jolie's nods are puke-worthy, truly and honestly, and The Tourist getting in over Toy Story 3 is reprehensible.

Could Manville be the first NBR best actress winner who misses since Mia Farrow? I personally never bought the "locked" talk that's been circling Manville all year. Largely unknown entities giving radiant performances in Mike Leigh films aren't always a slam dunk in the best actress race. Just ask Sally Hawkins.

I don't get the Ruffalo thing, maybe that big snub (with the attention of the other noms from "the kids are all right") helps him in the oscar-race because many voters see that big snub and vote for him. This time he really should get nominated!

Most awful (besides the embarrassing musical&comedy category) is the snub of Mike Leigh's "Another Year".

I'm just glad that regardless of that absolute joke of a best comedy/musical lineup (seriously, just do a Best Picture category and be done with it), that Christopher Nolan is getting TELEVISED awards recongnition as a Director. I'm sure he won't win, but I'm glad his name is on the list finally.

I try to look at the positive side, despite the Comedy atrociousness and the star f***ing. The nominations for Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling can only help Blue Valentine. And who would have ever thought that Darren Aronofsky, David Fincher, Christopher Nolan and David O. Russell would be director nominees at the Golden Globes, AND in the same year at that?

I'm actually shocked that "Love and Other Drugs" didn't make it into Comedy. I thought that was a sure bet, if only for its high profile.

On starfucking:-I'm flabbergasted that "The Tourist" did so well, especially since "Knight and Day" is a lot better.-The Halle Berry and Michael Douglas nominations are a joke, and I think everyone knows that.

On snubs:-Hawkins won the Globe, but now Manville isn't even nominated. Foreshadowing much.-I thought Ruffalo was a lock. Maybe more of an uphill climb than we thought?-I would attribute "True Grit" being snubbed to the fact that HFPA doesn't like Westerns. After all, "Scent of a Woman" beat "Unforgiven."

You know what's sad? It's taken me the better part of a day to remember what Red was. Two weeks ago, I FYCd it for Costume Design on this website. When it's actually nominated for something, I have no clue what it is anymore.

@Troia: I think that any hope for Justin Timberlake is gone. It reminds me of Mariah Carey in Precious; if anyone was going to give her campaign a boost, it was going to be the Golden Globes. For what it's worth though, I liked Carey better than Timberlake.

I know you shouldn't judge performances this way, but I couldn't really separate Justin's public persona from his character. It just struck me as Justin playing Justin.